Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) is the last individual protection to avoid occupational accidents. Incompliance with PPE use is still discovered in high rise building construction project at Siwalankerto Avenue 121-131, Surabaya city. Safety talk program is conducted by communicators in this project site and applied persuasively to increase workers’ compliance with PPE use. Hence, the communicators play important roles in influencing the workers on compliance with PPE use. The aim of this study was to understand the influence of safety talk communicators including their attract-tiveness, credibility and power on construction workers’ compliance with PPE use. This study was analytical observational with a cross sectional design. The result of linear regression showed regression coefficient score of attractiveness (B=0,198), credibility (B=1,193), and power (B=-0,562). It can be concluded that safety talk communicators’ variables which highly influenced on the construction workers’ compliance with PPE use were credibility and power. The communicators’ credibility influenced positively on compliance with PPE use while the communicators’ power influenced negatively.

1. International Journal of Advanced Engineering, Management and Science (IJAEMS) [Vol-2, Issue-6, June- 2016]
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The Influence of Safety Talk Communicators on
Compliance with Personal Protective Equipment
(PPE) Use in Construction Project
Ridzal Syahrozi1
, Denny Ardyanto2
, Sri Widati3
1,2
Department of Occupational Health and Safety, Faculty of Public Health Airlangga University, Indonesia
3
Department of Health Promotion and Behavioral Sciences, Faculty of Public Health Airlangga University, Indonesia
Abstract – Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) is the
last individual protection to avoid occupational
accidents. Incompliance with PPE use is still discovered
in high rise building construction project at Siwalankerto
Avenue 121-131, Surabaya city. Safety talk program is
conducted by communicators in this project site and
applied persuasively to increase workers’ compliance
with PPE use. Hence, the communicators play important
roles in influencing the workers on compliance with PPE
use. The aim of this study was to understand the influence
of safety talk communicators including their attract-
tiveness, credibility and power on construction workers’
compliance with PPE use. This study was analytical
observational with a cross sectional design. The result of
linear regression showed regression coefficient score of
attractiveness (B=0,198), credibility (B=1,193), and
power (B=-0,562). It can be concluded that safety talk
communicators’ variables which highly influenced on the
construction workers’ compliance with PPE use were
credibility and power. The communicators’ credibility
influenced positively on compliance with PPE use while
the communicators’ power influenced negatively.
Keyword – PPE, compliance, construction
I. INTRODUCTION
The number of occupational accidents in construction
project sites technically could be decreased by reducing
any kind of workers’ unsafe actions. One of the unsafe
actions frequently found in construction workers is not
using PPE (Personal Protective Equipment). PPE is the
last individual protection to avoid occupational accidents.
Incompliance with PPE use is still discovered in building
construction project at Siwalankerto Avenue 121-131,
Surabaya city. Nearly in daily, the workers hardly use
complete PPE, such as: mask, gloves, and boots.
Constructors as persons in charge of occupational safety
at the project site have conducted several programs to
foster the workers’ compliance with PPE use. One of
them is safety talk which is persuasively held once a
week. This program is able to give influence on the
workers to comply in using PPE at the work place.
Related to the problem mentioned above, it is necessary
to conduct a research regarding influence of individual
characteristics on compliance with PPE use. Findings of
the research could be references in construction workers’
recruitment. In other words, requirement of decent
workers recruitment will lead to obtain workers who
comply in using proper PPE. As a result, it enables us to
implement a zero accident at construction project sites.
II. METHODS
This study was analytical observational with a cross
sectional design. The aim was to analyze the influence of
safety talk communicators on compliance with PPE use.
The subject of this study was workers in construction
project site at Siwalankerto Avenue, Surabaya city. The
respondents were 44 irregular construction workers at the
project site.
Variables of this study were independent and dependent
variables. The independent ones included attractiveness,
credibility, and power of communicators; perception of
safety talk message; workers’ knowledge; motivation; and
attitude. One the other hand, the dependent variable was
score of workers’ compliance with PPE use including the
use and maintenance of PPE.
Techniques of data collection applied in this study were
interview and observation. Interview by questionnaires
was used to gain the independent variable data, while
observation was employed to gain the dependent variable
score. Statistic analysis utilizing linear regression was
used to understand the influence of each independent
characteristic variable on the score of compliance with
PPE use.
III. RESULT AND DISCUSSION
Surabaya is the second largest city in Indonesia. The large
of this city is 333.063km2
with its population reaches
2.909.257. Surabaya is the capital city of East Java
Province. According to Indonesian Statistic Center, the

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growth of construction sites in East Java province on
second quarter in 2015 was 5,2%. Construction projects
in this city grow rapidly. One of the projects is high rise
building construction. Implementation of this project is
construction of apartment, mall, and university. This
study was conducted in one university project site which
is located at Siwalankerto Avenue 121-131. Majority of
the workers were irregular hired by the company or
contractors.
Safety talk program is one of the programs from HSE
division aiming at preventing occupational accidents. This
program persuasively gives information to workers
related to safety and health issue at work place. The
information conveys to workers is the use of PPE.
Materials taught are the use and maintenance of PPE. It is
expected that the workers would become more
compliance with PPE use after participating in this
program.
Analysis of linear regression was conducted to understand
the influence of independent variables on a dependent
variable. The independent variables included attract-
tiveness, credibility, and power of communicators;
perception of safety talk message; workers’ knowledge on
PPE; motivation in using PPE; and attitude in wearing
PPE. One the other hand, the dependent variable was
score of compliance with PPE use. The finding of
computer analysis (Table 2) displayed the total of
adjusted R2
was 0,716 in other words 71,6% variation of
compliance with PPE use was explained by the
independent variables mentioned above. The rest of the
score 28,4% (100% - 71,6% = 28,4%) was affected by
external causes.
The result of F test found that F score was 16,459 with
probability 0,000. The probability was a lot smaller than
0,05. Consequently, regression model could be used to
predict the workers’ compliance with PPE use or in other
words attractiveness, credibility, and power of
communicators; perception of safety talk message;
workers’ knowledge on PPE; motivation in using PPE;
and attitude in wearing PPE simultaneously influenced on
the workers’ compliance with PPE use.
The score of constant was 1,329 proved that if
independent variable was constant, average score of the
workers’ compliance with PPE use was 1,329. Variables
contributed highly on the compliance with PPE use were
credibility and power of safety talk communicators. It was
explained by regression coefficient scores which were
higher than other variables. The regression coefficient
score of safety talk communicators’ credibility was 1,193
confirming that every increasing of safety talk
communicators’ credibility score by 1 led to increasing of
compliance with PPE use score by 1,193. In contrast, the
regression coefficient score of safety talk communicators’
power was -0,562 proving that every increasing of the
safety talk communicators’ power score by 1 led to
decreasing of compliance with PPE use score by 0,562.
The credibility of safety talk communicators influenced
positively on the workers’ compliance with PPE use.
Meaning that the higher credibility of safety talk
communicators, the higher of workers’ compliance with
PPE use and maintenance. Unlike the influence of
communicators’ credibility, the safety talk commu-
nicators’ power influenced negatively on the compliance
with PPE use. It indicated that the more power of safety
talk communicators showed to the workers, the less
workers’ compliance with PPE use.
According to Mulyana (2015), one of communication
principals is irreversible, meaning once a communicator
conveys a message; s/he could not control the influence of
the message at all. Behavior is an event. Hence, it
happens in time and irretrievable. Irreversible is
implication of communication as a changing process.
Compliance is significant communication function in
order that behavior produced similar with message
conveyed. Based on Budyatna & Ganiem (2011),
compliance occurs if behavior of one or more individuals
meets other’s expectation. In communication pattern in
which compliance represents level of environment
restrain, necessities and results acquired by commu-
nicators are identical. Ability in restraining many external
factor issues mostly depends on compliance of others to
grant communicators’ wishes in the form of a message. It
was found in analysis result that variables of
communicator which greatly contributed on compliance
with PPE use were credibility and power of safety talk
communicators.
According to Kiesler in Azwar (2013), popular and
attractive communicators will be more effective than
unpopular and unattractive ones. The result depicted that
communicators’ attractiveness gave minor influence on
workers’ compliance with PPE use. It might happen
because the communicators tend to convey message
authoritatively in daily. Based on Malik (1994) in
persuasive meaning democratic leadership style is more
excellent than authoritative style for majority of small
group. If communicators’ attractiveness were combined
with authoritative leadership style, compliance with PPE
use would be failure.
Observation result of safety talk program showed that the
method used in conveying message was persuasive not
compulsion method. Cesar M. Mercado in Susanto (1986)
stated that difference between persuasive and compulsion
strategy lays in which one of two factors change initially,
attitude or action. It is explained previously that safety
talk conducted persuasively is expected to change the
workers’ attitude. Afterwards, compliance behavior might

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emerge. According to Azwar (2013), generally an
individual tends to have conformist attitude or in line with
his/her significant others. When communicator’s
credibility is able to convey important information, it will
gradually change attitude in line with stated meaning.
The next analysis result depicted that communicators’
credibility influenced positively on attitude and the
attitude influenced positively on compliance. The
credibility also influenced positively on compliance. In
persuasive method, communicators’ credibility formerly
changed the workers’ attitude then changed the
compliance with PPE use. The safety talk commu-
nicators’ credibility enabled us to clarify information
regarding the most significant use of PPE by the
construction workers. As a result, the workers’ attitude
will change followed by their improvement in compliance
with PPE use.
The other analysis result demonstrated that commu-
nicators’ power influenced negatively on compliance. In
other words, the workers would not be more comply and
against persuasive messages. It was because the
communicators were over power. French and Raven in
Mc Quail (1987) stated that influence via communication
is a form of power use relied on communicators’ capital
and wealth. Two kinds of capital mentioned are
categorized as rewards and compulsion. Legitimation
power existed meaning the influence is accepted. It
assumes that communicators have rights to be followed or
complied. Thing to be cautionus is when communicators
over power, it could lead to incompliance. In defensive
behaviors, strategy to make persuasive method no longer
effective is defaming source of message conveyer. Thus,
their power or authority vanish.
IV. TABLES
Table 1. Frequency Distribution on Compliance in Using
PPE
No.
Compliance
in PPE
Comply
Not
Comply
Compliance
Percentage
Use of PPE
1
Use of safety
helmet
44 0 100 %
2 Use of mask 25 19 56,8 %
3 Use of gloves 28 16 63,6 %
4
Use of safety
shoes
35 9 79,6 %
5
Using safety
helmet
properly
22 22 50 %
6
Using PPE
properly
37 7 84,1 %
Maintenance of PPE
7
Maintenance
of safety
helmet
33 11 75 %
8
Maintenance
of gloves
16 28 36,4 %
9
Maintenance
of safety
shoes
25 19 56,8 %
Table 2. Regression Analysis
Model B
F test Adjusted
R2
F Sig.
(Constant) 1,329
16,459 0,000 0,716
Attractiveness 0,198
Credibility 1,193
Power -0,562
Perception of
safety talk
message
0,129
Workers’
knowledge
0,006
Motivation 0,055
Attititude 0,067
V. CONCLUSION
Based on the analysis results regarding the influence of
communicators on workers’ compliance with PPE use, it
was found that variables of safety talk communicators
which had the highest and the most significant influence
on compliance with PPE use were credibility and power
of communicators. The credibility of communicators had
positive influence on compliance with PPE use, while the
power of communicators had negative influence. Based
on this conclusion, it is suggested that the safety talk
communicators’ credibility needs to be improved in order
compliance with PPE use improves. Also, the project’s
management should require the safety talk
communicators to participate in Occupational Health and
Safety (OHS) trainings particularly trainings related to the
use of PPE.
REFERENCES
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